Thursday, April 8, 2010

blog 2010/04/08: My week has been a biathalon of errands. Except, no guns.

Claude VonStroke - Bay AreaClaude VonStroke - The Greasy Beat ft Bootsy Collins (Funk Bomb DJ Version): 2009's Bird Brain LP was fricking fantastic. There just almost never exists electronic albums that work as a whole. But holy shit, Claude does it up right. This is a super pleasure from start to finish. And the funk! The funk is so right. And thank heavens for Bootsy Collins, still funky after all these years, and never compromising his flaboyant style. Highly reccomended for DJs and electronic music fans alike.

Colin Meloy - Jack The Ripper (Morrissey cover): Meloy loves singing songs. For a guy with a songbook a mile long, he still takes a good amount of time to dip in to the classics, and this is from his Sings Morrissey endeavour.

Gil Scott-Heron - Me And The DevilGil Scott-Heron - On Coming From A Broken Home (Part 2)Gil Scott-Heron - Where Did The Night Go: This man is a wise master, but he's back with something simply stunning for 2010. His new album "I'm New Here" mixes modern day production and forward thinking grooves with wonderfully soulful singing mixed equally with pitch-perfect spoken word. Ultimately original, and highly recommended.

Kid Sister - Daydreaming (Jakwob Remix): Oh how Jakwob has some real shiners out there! And instead of a slammer, this one is rather subdued and thoughtful. Well played, sir.
Major Lazer & Harold Faltermeyer - Pon De Foley (Ludachrist Remix): Yeah, this is so damn appropriate it hurts. Axel Foley on the beat box! (and if you are too young to appreciate this... what the hell? Go rent Beverly Hills Cop and get stupid drunk.
Mala Rodríguez - Tambalea (A Tidus Mix): What is she saying? I don't know, but I love the laidback sort of "get of my porch" kind of tone in her voice.

Mulatu Astatke - Green Africa: Some times jazz is a dangerous weapon that is sent out to just melt your mind. This track is just nuclear. Insanely complex and at the same time disarmingly familiar, how can you not get sucked in? From the new LP Mulatu Steps Ahead.

Spektre & Matt Cooper - Kicking K: This is probably the best way to break the tech-house drought on here. Incredibley atmospheric and punchy, with enough crunch & dubby Radioslave hacks going on to keep me satisfied. What a good trip.

The Icon And The Axe - Dust BowlThe Icon And The Axe - Munich To BerlinThe Icon And The Axe - Portrayal In A False Light: These are from the 2009 album "Propaganda", which is pretty great, and flew underneath everyone's radar. I dunno. Maybe it's because it sounds like the 90s? Like something that could have been a collaboration betwee Poe and James? If you can get down with that striaght-up pop-rock with soulful folk-like lyrics, really give this album a try. The whole thing is pleasant, and there are a number of infectious melodies.

The Knife - Annie's Box (alt. vocal): We posted a track from "Tomorrow, In A Year" earlier in the blog, but now that the album is properly released and I've been able to go through the whole thing, I just had to post up more and mention it again. The scope of the project is wonderfully large without being unapproachable. It is certainly far more adventurous in the soundscaping area than more traditionally idm-poppy Knife stuff, but if you've followed them this long, you really owe it to them (and yourself!) and follow them down this dark alley as well. Highly recommended for everyone interested in abstract electronic music, dark idm, and opera.

Toe - ??????: I don't know if this track had Kanji characters or what, or even what album it's from, but it's a wonderful slab of instrumental rock that reminds me of the best of The Dylan Group, with a touch of Tortoise. And that makes Caitlyn very happy. I wish it were 20 minutes long.

Warrior Queen and Heatwave - Things Change: Closing things up is the CPI's MP3 Blog favourite Warrior Queen, and this single comes to us from a Soul Jazz Records comp, who pop up every year to remind us just how awesome of a label they truly are.